Monday, February 17, 2014

Hey

Things are going well here. We've had a couple things in the zone. First,
the new Colombian Elder P. got his visa to Mexico. We took him to the
terminal and sent him off. It's too bad; I liked the little rolo (rolo is what
they call people from Bogotá here). Turns out he knew Brandon Beck in the MTC.
Also, one of the sisters got transferred out for going to a circus in another
city or something like that. So what´s happening now is they sent one of the
elders here in Bugalagrande to Andalucía to replace Elder P. and the other
elder here is now in a trio with us. This is the second time I've been in a
trio, and both times it has been with Elder D.

So we went into an investigators house the other day and saw a weird
looking plant in the backyard. Yeah, it was weed. The plants were pretty huge.
The family is really poor too. I don´t think they have realized that they have
hundreds of dollars worth of weed in their backyard. haha.

People burn the grass here. I´m not sure why. (not grass as in "weed" but
the actual grass).

In Tuluá some guy was walking through the street shouting, ''La coca, la
marijuana, la coca, la marijuana.'' I´m pretty sure its for making creams and
stuff that help pain, but it was still pretty funny to hear that in broad
daylight.

Information for mailing packages to Elder Chase

If you ship a package with a private courier, you will need this phone number 57 2-892-1709

This is the mission office address. You may mail letters and packages to this address.
To mail a letter of normal size and weight it costs 98 cents to mail it here.
You can use the church pouch mail for letters at the following address:

Elder Brandon Chase

Colombia Cali Mission

POB 30150

Salt Lake City, UT 84130-0150

Pouch Mail Instructions: To prevent possible fines, only postcards and letters that are single sheet, folded into three-panels, and taped at the top only (no envelopes) may be sent through the pouch. Packages cannot be sent through pouch mail.
I think using US Mail is less expensive and just fine...I would NOT use their priority shipping as it seems to be more expensive.
Here are some hints we have learned about the mail system to/from Colombia:
It is better to send things in padded envelopes rather than boxes.

If the packages weigh less than 2 kilos (about 4 lbs) they usually arrive without the missionary having to pay a fee to get it out of customs.

You should declare ANY package at a value LESS than about $20 to also avoid paying a customs fee.
Most letters and packages are taking about 14 or 15 days to arrive.
Our missionaries have to PAY ON TOP of what you have paid to ship...just to receive the package... IF it is too heavy or worth a lot. It is better to send 2 envelopes than to pay a lot and send a big box.
Mail leaving Colombia for the USA is VERY VERY expensive. I tried to mail a regular letter to my brother and they wanted 77 mil pesos or about 40 dollars to mail it. I did NOT mail it.
The best way to communicate with your missionary is via email.

If you want to put money on a debit card he brought with him....that is also an excellent gift.
Once a package arrives in the office it can take up to a month to get it out to the missionary as our mission is SO big and we have to wait until we can get it to the zone leaders at a conference.
If you want to send something for Christmas, plan accordingly for the time it might take and mark the package FOR CHRISTMAS.